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manager Mike Matheny said. "He made it happen." Darvish has made a smooth adjustment to the major le
Topic Started: May 14 2014, 10:38 AM (6 Views)
zake201
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PITTSBURGH -- The storybook ending for Chipper Jones would have been putting a fastball into the Allegheny River. At age 40, however, Jones doesnt try to mash the baseball so much as massage it. Instead, the Atlanta Braves third baseman had to settle for bookending his 19-year career with pinch-hit singles. Jones rapped an A.J. Burnett pitch to right field in his final regular season at-bat and the Atlanta Braves beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-0 on Wednesday. "Id like to thank A.J. for coming right at me," Jones said with a laugh after collecting the 2,726th and final regular-season hit of his 19-year career. Jones entered as a pinch hitter in the sixth. Batting left-handed, he took the first pitch he saw from Burnett and laced it to the outfield, proving a nice bit of symmetry. Jones singled in the first at-bat of his career against Cincinnati on Sept. 14, 1993. "I got to go out the same way I came in," Jones said. The Braves ended 1993 in the World Series, though Jones didnt play. Theyre hoping to do the same after grabbing the top wild-card spot. Atlanta hosts defending world champion St. Louis on Friday, with the winner advancing to the division series. "Now weve got to get over this one-game playoff thing to give ourselves a legitimate shot at what we were all shooting for out of spring training," Jones said. While Jones is heading to the post-season, Atlanta pitcher Ben Sheets is almost certainly not. Still, the veteran right-hander who has been dogged by injuries in recent years was able to go out on his own terms. Sheets pitched one scoreless inning in what hes said will be his final major league appearance, striking out two -- including Pittsburgh star Andrew McCutchen -- while hitting 96 mph on the radar gun. "It felt great," Sheets said. "It was as good as anything I could probably draw up." Sheets is unlikely to be placed on Atlantas post-season roster, but with a playoff spot secure and nothing really to lose, the Braves sent the four-time All-Star to the mound one last time. He needed just a couple minutes to get loose and when he walked back to the dugout after three quick outs, he knew he was done. Asked if hed consider sticking around to find a spot in a bullpen somewhere, Sheets just smiled and said, "dude, Im good." So are the 94-win Braves, who are heading into the post-season with some momentum after a stunning collapse last fall forced them to watch the playoffs on television. Instead of swooning down the stretch this year, theyve surged. Atlanta is 20-10 since Sept. 1. "A little bit different than last year as I recall," Jones said. "I think well look back on (last) September as a learning experience. No better example of that than the way we played this September." Jason Heyward singled twice and scored two runs for the Braves while Luis Avilan (1-0) won on a day Atlanta used eight pitchers to hold Pittsburgh to four hits. "We got some stuff accomplished today and we got the win," said Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez. "A lot of good stuff." Burnett (16-10) gave up four runs in 5 2-3 innings for Pittsburgh. The Pirates finished 79-83, extending their record streak of losing seasons to 20. "We needed to win our games," manager Clint Hurdle said. "Our goal was to win more games." A regular-season finale that looked like it might be important a month ago had a decidedly spring training feel after the Pirates collapsed down the stretch. Pittsburgh was 62-46 on Aug. 8 but finished on a 17-37 slide, though the teams 79 wins tied for the most since the infamous streak began following a loss to the Braves in the 1992 NL championship series. "You have to try and take some positives from it," said McCutchen, who hit .327 this season to finish second behind San Franciscos Buster Posey for the NL batting title. "Every year is hard to take when you dont end up where you want to be. Every year is tough." Maybe none, however, were more painful than this one. The Pirates were the talk of baseball over the summer behind a pitching staff that flourished behind Burnett, who embraced the roll of ace the team desperately needed. He won eight straight decisions in the spring but tailed off over the final two months and couldnt avoid his fifth loss in his six starts, though he exited to a warm ovation. "I thought he had an exceptional season," Hurdle said of Burnett. "He took ownership of the trade, the career, the opportunity to re-ignite himself." NOTES: The Pirates drew 2,091, 918 to PNC Park this season, the second-highest total in team history. The average attendance of 26,149 was up from 23,956 in 2011 ... The Braves will start RHP Kris Medlen (10-1, 1.57 ERA) Friday against Kyle Lohse (16-3, 2.86) ... The Pirates open the 2013 season at home on April 1 against the Chicago Cubs. Cheap Jerseys Online . Chipper Jones and Freddie Freeman hit two-run doubles, and the Atlanta Braves scored six runs in the first two innings to beat the Miami Marlins 6-1 on Thursday night. Cheap NFL Jerseys . The Cleveland Browns plan to have an "appropriate recognition" for the late Modell at the season opener against the Philadelphia Eagles. http://www.cheapjerseysapp.com/ . The Eskimos kicker missed a last-minute field goal for the second straight game as the Calgary Stampeders won the Labour Day rematch in Edmonton 20-18 on Friday. Cheap Jerseys From China . -- The Philadelphia Eagles have ruled out defensive tackle Mike Patterson for their entire training camp and possibly more because the incision where he had brain surgery in January hasnt fully healed. Wholesale Jerseys . For the first two years after he joined the Los Angeles Galaxy in 2007, he was more of a brand than a player, his impact at Americas cash registers far greater than any transformation on the field. CHICAGO -- Texas Rangers pitcher Yu Darvish was hit by a line drive during one All-Star game in Japan. Hes hoping to avoid that mishap on Tuesday. Darvish and St. Louis Cardinals third baseman David Freese are headed to the Midsummer Classic after fans voted them into next weeks showcase in Kansas City. "I feel very good," Darvish said Thursday through an interpreter. "I know the way that I got selected was a vote by the fans, so I appreciate all the fans who voted for me. Im looking forward to it." Darvish is the eighth Rangers player on the AL team managed by Texas Ron Washington. He beat out four other pitchers: Chicagos Jake Peavy, Baltimores Jason Hammel, Kansas Citys Jonathan Broxton and the Angels Ernesto Frieri. "It just wasnt meant to be," said Peavy, who was supported by an aggressive marketing campaign by the White Sox. "Obviously we knew its hard to outvote a country." Freese emerged from an NL field that included Atlanta outfielder Michael Bourn, Nationals rookie outfielder Bryce Harper and Arizona second baseman Aaron Hill. "Im happy, Im thrilled," Freese said before St. Louis hosted the Rockies on Thursday night. "Thank you Cardinal Nation. Unbelievable support from friends, family and Cardinals fans." Freese, the World Series andd NL championship series MVP last fall, joins teammates Carlos Beltran, Rafael Furcal, Yadier Molina and Lance Lynn on the NL roster.dddddddddddd Freese began the day with a .285 batting average, 13 homers and 50 RBIs. "You stack up his numbers and hes deserving," St. Louis manager Mike Matheny said. "He made it happen." Darvish has made a smooth adjustment to the major leagues after the Rangers committed more than $107 million to bring him to the U.S. The 25-year-old right-hander got a guaranteed $56 million, six-year contract and Texas also paid a record $51.7 million posting bid to his team in Japan. Darvish responded by going 6-1 with a 2.60 ERA in his first eight starts. The rookie levelled off a bit but is 10-5 with a 3.59 ERA for the only team in the majors with 50 wins. And now hes into his first major league All-Star game. "I dont know where I stand amongst the team, I think I just want to stay quiet and stay out of the way of the players, not be a burden to them," he said. "Ill have (Rangers teammate) Matt Harrison act as my older brother, Ill just hide behind him all day." Atlantas Chipper Jones had been in the running for the NL spot before he was chosen as an injury replacement for Matt Kemp. Online voting for the final spots ended Thursday. ' ' '
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